M60A3 TTS (China)

This page is about the main battle tank M60A3 TTS (China). For other versions, see M60 (Family).

␗M60A3 TTS

M41D

CM11

␗M60A3 TTS

M41D

CM11

China

VI Rank

Battle rating:

AB	RB	SB
9.0	9.0	9.0

Class:

Medium tank

Research:190 000

Purchase:520 000

Show in game

Description

The ␗105 mm Gun Tank M60A3 TTS, officially M60A3戰車 as listed on ROCA open day's description, is currently the only two MBTs in ROCA active service alongside with CM11 since 1990s. Due to the aging of their already obsolete M48A1 fleet and intensify of possible cross-strait conflict, ROCA ordered 460 M60A3 TTS from US stocks (160 in 1994 and 300 in 1996 respectively, delivered from 1995 to 2002) to upgrade their tank fleet with more advanced FCS than PLAGF tanks. Although the outbreak of war was adverted, these tanks would mostly be used by ROCA armored corps on the main island; after the plans to upgrade all these tanks domestically with 120 mm gun and new FCS were cancelled in favor for retrofitted M1A2T, the remaining operable tanks will serve ROCA for the time being until the new tanks deliver from 2024. With only 108 M1A2T deliver in future, some of these M60A3 TTS will receive FCS upgrades while some will upgrade their now-discontinued engines to higher output Renk America AVDS-1790-2 CAU (1050 hp).

Introduced in Update 1.91 "Night Vision" with the Chinese tech-tree, as with the previous M48A1, this M60A3 is a US medium tank operated by Taiwan. It boasts thermal sights, a two-plane stabilizer, good gun handling, and a wide selection of ammunition. It does suffer from a large profile, average mobility, and inadequate protection, utilize its more advanced FCS and stay behind the line with covers for maximum efficiency.

Succeeding the M60A3 is the CM11, which uses the same hull but now equipped with GIAT ERA packages and new ammunitions.

General info

Survivability and armour

Smoke grenades

Creation of a smoke screen in front of the vehicle

ESS

Creation of a smoke screen in the direction of movement of the vehicle

Armourfront / side / back

Hull108 / 70 / 40

Turret230 / 49 / 57

Crew4 people

Visibility142 %

The base armour layout of the M60A3 TTS is the same as the M60A1 RISE (P). Unlike the US version, it does not have ERA panels, making chemical munitions a large threat.

The armour is similar to the layout originally featured on the M60A1 (AOS). It consists entirely of cast and rolled homogeneous armour. The frontal hull armour and turret cheeks are fairly thick and can generally shrug off fire from Soviet APHE rounds and autocannons. The large volumetric gun mantlet has impressive thickness at some points and may be able to shrug off APDS rounds at times, though the majority of APFSDS rounds will go through. When the turret is pointed directly at a threat, the turret cheeks are also surprisingly strong against kinetic rounds. The turret ring is a notable weak zone, only 114 mm thick and fairly large in size. The commander's cupola bulges from the top of the turret and is lightly protected, making it an attractive target for APHE and high-calibre HE rounds.

With only steel armour, the M60A3's protection should not be trusted. Considering the tank's unimpressive mobility, enemy flankers are a real concern as well, and nearly every weapon at the M60A3's rank can penetrate the hull sides as well. It is practically naked against chemical or subcalibre munitions, so avoiding hits is paramount.

Armour type:

• Cast homogeneous armour
• Rolled homogeneous armour (Rear roof, Engine grille)

Armour	Front	Sides	Rear	Roof
Hull	108 mm (66°) Front Glacis 137 mm (54°) Lower Glacis	36 - 70 mm	25 mm (1°) Engine Grille 40 mm (31°) Top 28 mm (61°) Bottom	36 mm Front 20 mm Engine deck
Turret	215 + 50.8 mm (1-43°) Turret front left 230 + 50.8 mm (4-50°) Turret front right 127 mm (8-57°) Gun Mantlet	215 - 49 mm	57 mm	48 mm Front 25.4 mm Center
Armour	Front	Sides	Rear	Roof
Cupola	127 mm	70 mm	50 mm	101.6 mm

Notes:

• Tracks are 30 mm thick while suspension wheels are 20 mm thick.
• Belly armour is 19 mm in the front, 13 mm in the rear.
• 15 mm RHA plate between the engine and crew compartment.

Mobility

Speedforward / back

AB53 / 13 km/h

RB and SB48 / 12 km/h

Number of gears6 forward

2 back

Weight51.7 t

Engine power

AB1 431 hp

RB and SB750 hp

Power-to-weight ratio

AB27.7 hp/t

RB and SB14.5 hp/t

Game Mode	Max Speed (km/h)		Weight (tons)	Engine power (horsepower)		Power-to-weight ratio (hp/ton)
	Forward	Reverse		Stock	Upgraded	Stock	Upgraded
Arcade	53	13	51.7	1162	1,431	22.48	27.68
Realistic	48	12		663	750	12.82	14.51

The M60A3 TTS's mobility is unimpressive. The power-to-weight and reverse speed are only slightly better than the ZTZ59D1 and pale in comparison to the Leopard A1A1 or OF-40 Mk.2A. Do not expect to arrive on the battlefield before others and be careful not to overextend. It does have neutral steering and can turn in place, which may be a nice bonus for players used to driving Soviet/PRC tanks.

Modifications and economy

Repair costBasic → Reference

AB3 948 → 6 233

RB4 099 → 6 472

SB5 072 → 8 008

Total cost of modifications158 500

265 000

Talisman cost2 600

Crew training150 000

Experts520 000

Aces2 100

Research Aces950 000

Reward for battleAB / RB / SB

150 / 200 / 240 %

220 / 220 / 220 %

Modifications

Mobility	Protection	Firepower
Tracks Research: 6 700 Cost: 11 000 300 Suspension Research: 7 600 Cost: 12 000 340 Brake System Research: 7 600 Cost: 12 000 340 Filters Research: 8 400 Cost: 13 000 370 Transmission Research: 11 000 Cost: 17 000 490 Engine Research: 11 000 Cost: 17 000 490	Improved Parts Research: 2 000 Cost: 11 000 300 Improved FPE Research: 2 300 Cost: 12 000 340 Crew Replenishment Research: 8 400 Cost: 13 000 370 ESS Research: 11 000 Cost: 17 000 490	Horizontal Drive Research: 6 700 Cost: 11 000 300 105mm_usa_HESH_ammo_pack Research: 6 700 Cost: 11 000 300 105mm_us_M416_Smoke_ammo_pack Research: 6 700 Cost: 11 000 300 Adjustment of Fire Research: 7 600 Cost: 12 000 340 NVD Research: 7 600 Cost: 12 000 340 Elevation Mechanism Research: 8 400 Cost: 13 000 370 105mm_usa_M735_APDS_FS_ammo_pack Research: 8 400 Cost: 13 000 370 Smoke grenade Research: 8 400 Cost: 13 000 370 Artillery Support Research: 11 000 Cost: 17 000 490 Laser rangefinder Research: 11 000 Cost: 17 000 490

Armaments

Laser rangefinder

Reduces the error and increases the maximum measurable distance of the rangefinder

Night vision device

Improves visibility by enhancing natural light or active illumination.

Thermal imager

Allows to see thermal radiation in the infrared range day and night

Main armament

105 mm M68 cannon

Two-plane stabilizer

Reduces the swing of the gun in two planes while moving

Ammunition63 rounds

First-order37 rounds

Reloadbasic crew → aces

8.7 → 6.7 s

Vertical guidance-10° / 20°

The M60A3 TTS is equipped with a 105 mm M68 rifled gun functionally identical to the ubiquitous Royal Ordnance L7. Although the gun itself is essentially the same as the ZTZ59D1's, the M60 platform offers a significantly faster reload, faster gun handling, and vastly improved gun depression. Fighting on hilly terrain is much easier and swinging the turret around during close range combat is not such a struggle.

105 mm M68					Turret rotation speed (°/s)					Reloading rate (seconds)
Mode	Capacity	Vertical	Horizontal	Stabilizer	Stock	Upgraded	Full	Expert	Aced	Stock	Full	Expert	Aced
Arcade	63	-10°/+20°	±180°	Two-plane	21.40	29.65	36.00	39.81	42.35	8.71	7.70	7.10	6.70
Realistic					13.40	15.75	19.13	21.15	22.50

Ammunition

Penetration statistics
Ammunition	Type of warhead	Penetration @ 0° Angle of Attack (mm)
		10 m	100 m	500 m	1,000 m	1,500 m	2,000 m
M728	APDS	265	263	252	240	228	216
M393A2	HESH	127	127	127	127	127	127
M456	HEATFS	400	400	400	400	400	400
M735	APFSDS	292	291	284	275	266	257

Shell details
Ammunition	Type of warhead	Velocity (m/s)	Projectile mass (kg)	Fuse delay (m)	Fuse sensitivity (mm)	Explosive mass (TNT equivalent) (kg)	Ricochet
							0%	50%	100%
M728	APDS	1,426	4.53	-	-	-	75°	78°	80°
M393A2	HESH	732	11.2	0.1	4	4.31	73°	77°	80°
M456	HEATFS	1,174	10.5	0.05	0.1	1.27	65°	72°	77°
M735	APFSDS	1,501	3.72	-	-	-	78°	80°	81°

Smoke shell characteristics
Ammunition	Velocity (m/s)	Projectile mass (kg)	Screen radius (m)	Screen deploy time (s)	Screen hold time (s)	Explosive mass (TNT equivalent) (g)
M416	732	11.6	16	5	25	50

The stock M728 APDS has unimpressive flat penetration but good angled penetration, actually beating out a few APFSDS rounds. It works decently against most opponents but might struggle to finish off vehicles with large volumes or extremely thin armour due to the concentrated post-penetration damage. Players used to the Type 59 or Type 69 will be happy to know that M728 can consistently penetrate the upper glacis of the M60A1 (AOS) and M60A1 RISE (P). The M456 HEATFS penetrates 400 mm of RHA at any distance and will have no issue enemies with steel armour. Unfortunately, it will often detonate upon impact with bushes or fences and the post-penetration damage can be inconsistent. Enemy tanks equipped with ERA like the M60A1 RISE (P) are almost frontally immune to it. The M393A2 HESH round generates a wide but shallow spray of spalling upon impact and might be useful on occasion against lightly armoured vehicles, but it has poor ballistics and is generally not worth it in normal combat.

The M735 APFSDS round is the best all-purpose offering. It improves upon the APDS round in all aspects and there are few enemies at the M60A3 TTS's rank that can resist it. The angled penetration tops out at about 160 mm at 60 degrees, which is less than the ~190 mm at 60 degrees offered by the ZTZ59D1's APFSDS, but this will typically not be a problem unless uptiered against Soviet MBTs.

Ammo racks

Ammo racks of the M60A3 TTS (China)

Full ammo	1st rack empty	2nd rack empty	3rd rack empty	4th rack empty	5th rack empty	Visual discrepancy
63	49 (+14)	38 (+25)	17 (+46)	4 (+59)	1 (+62)	No

Turret empty: 17 (+46)

Machine guns

12.7 mm M85 machine gun

Ammunition900 rounds

Belt capacity180 rounds

Reloadbasic crew → aces

10.4 → 8.0 s

Fire rate626 shots/min

Vertical guidance-9° / 60°

7.62 mm M240 machine gun (coaxial)

Ammunition6 000 rounds

Belt capacity200 rounds

Reloadbasic crew → aces

10.4 → 8.0 s

Fire rate941 shots/min

12.7 mm M85
Mount	Capacity (Belt)	Fire rate	Vertical	Horizontal
Pintle	1,000 (200)	626	-9°/+60°	±180°

7.62 mm M240
Mount	Capacity (Belt)	Fire rate	Vertical	Horizontal
Coaxial	6,000 (200)	941	N/A	N/A

Usage in battles

The M60A3 TTS lacks the mobility to arrive first on the front lines or easily flank, but the unimpressive protection means that advancing steadily in the open is not a safe proposition either. It does not have ERA like its US counterpart and is even more vulnerable to enemy chemical munitions. Still, the turret can bounce incoming fire on occasion and it enjoys good gun handling relative to other tanks in the Chinese tech tree, so it is more suited to peeking over hills or brawling in urban combat than the ZTZ59D1, which has less than half the gun depression and turret rotation speed.

It is best to follow teammates, stay close to cover, and take advantage of the thermal sight to scan for opponents. Large pieces of cover such as buildings or geographic features will compensate for the M60A3's large size and shorter pieces of cover might allow the M60A3 to peek its gun over while obstructing most of the tank. A quick glance through the gunner's scope can reveal hidden enemies from afar. The armour and mobility issues are less important if one can consistently catch targets off guard and shoot first, and if the rest of the team is causing a ruckus, all the better. Keep an eye out for flankers and avoid staying out of cover for long. The M60A3 has thinner side armour than the ZTZ59D1 and all IFV autocannons can penetrate it.

Thermal sights are very helpful and not quite ubiquitous at the M60A3's rank, but they are not uncommon either. IFVs like the Begleitpanzer 57, BMP-3, and Type 89 have them and can spot the M60A3 easily. Thankfully, these targets are more reliant on ATGMs for long distance combat, which are easier to avoid than APFSDS rounds. They will still pack a huge punch upon a successful hit, so do not stand still. The premium AMX-30 Super, Leopard A1A1 (L/44), and Type 74G all boast thermal sights and superior mobility, making them difficult targets indeed. The only real way to deal with them is to shoot first.

Helicopters are common at the M60A3's battle rating. The M60A3 will be easily destroyed by ATGMs and rockets since it has no dedicated HEAT protection, and it is also quite easy to spot from afar due to its large size. Smoke grenades can be helpful if caught in the open and in an emergency the commander's heavy machine gun can be used along with the main gun to harass nearby helicopters.

Overall, the M60A3 TTS is a no-frills tank that can perform well in almost any situation. It does not have any special features or outstanding strengths, but the combination of decent APFSDS, thermal sights, and good gun handling at a battle rating of 8.7 is a nice and relaxing package. The ZTZ59D1 has a more powerful APFSDS round, a lower profile, and potentially better protection but will often be let down by its abysmal gun handling and slow reload. The two tanks work well for laid-back players who prefer to hang back instead of aggressively rushing.

Pros and cons

Pros:

• Good quality thermal sight for the gunner
• M735 APFSDS is powerful with its good penetration, velocity, and trajectory
• Has a laser rangefinder
• -10 degrees gun depression works great in hilly maps
• Offers various other shell types other than APFSDS
• Crew members are quite spread out, sometimes reducing the chance of being knocked out by a single APDS/APFSDS round
• Has a 12.7 mm heavy MG for light vehicles/helicopters
• Default camouflage is effective in dark urban maps like Berlin
• Turret can occasionally bounce kinetic rounds

Cons:

• Not very mobile
• Is a large and tall target
• Armour is virtually useless against APFSDS/HEATFS
• Turret ring and cupola are all notable weak spots
• Unlike US equivalents, lacks ERA against chemical warheads
• Bad gun depression when aiming backwards

History

Service in ROC armed forces

The August 17 Communiqué (The Announcement by China and the United States on Solving the Issue of US Arms Sales to Taiwan) signed by the PRC and the United States restricted the United States' sales of military equipment to Taiwan not exceeding the technology level of the 1980s. At that time, it was not possible for the ROC army to equip with new American-made MBTs in the close future. However, in August 1994, the US government agreed to sell 160 second-hand M60A3TTS main battle tanks to Taiwan, and in May 1996 approved the contract for a second batch of additional 300 tanks. These M60A3TTS MBTs were delivered around the 1996 Taiwan Strait Missile Crisis, and this move undoubtedly contained the PRC's further attempts to invade Taiwan by force.

Since 1995, the first batch of 160 M60A3 tanks began arriving in Taiwan, and the second delivery was completed to the end of 1997. The first unit of Armored Corps to receive M60A3 MBTs was the 780th Tank Battalion of the 249th Mechanized Infantry Division, and the subsequent M60A3 TTS tank battalions were the 771 Tank Battalion of the 249 Mechanized Infantry Division and the 781 Tank Battalion of the 109 Mechanized Infantry Division. It's worth mentioning that during the Taiwan Strait Missile Crisis in 1995-1996, the 773rd Tank Battalion of the 701st battle group (affiliated to the 284th Infantry Division) stationed in Kinmen also received 2 companies of 28 M60A3 TTS main battle tanks. The listed troops were all the units in ROC Army that were equipped with M60A3 before the program of armed forces reorganization codenamed "Lean" landed in 1998.

In view of the fact that the combat effectiveness of M60A3 main battle tanks is way inferior to their opponents serving in People's Liberation Army, the Academia Sinica in Taiwan planned to carry out a series of upgrades for the M60A3 tanks in service in 2016. The upgrade project included the installation of a devastating M256 120 mm smoothbore cannon, replacement of the fire control system, and upgrade of power components. According to the plan, a total of 300 M60A3/CM11 tanks should receive such upgrades to coordinate with the M1A2T "Abrams" MBTs sold by the United States. However, the upgrade program was too expensive for the Army to afford (the program was expected to cost 100 million NT$ each, which is even more expensive than purchasing a brand-new M1A1 Abrams MBT), the Army turned to seek a plan to extend the service life of them. The Army Ordnance Industry Development Center of the Joint Logistics Command planned to purchase a batch of Renk America AVDS-1790-2 ACU to replace the Continental (now a subsidy of Renk America) AVDS-1790-2 air-cooled diesel engines that would soon be discontinued from production, as well as provision for FCS upgrades for some M60A3 TTS. These modified M60A3 tanks would be equipped by units in northern Taiwan, and coordinating with the US-aided M1A2T "Abrams" MBTs to defend Taipei.

(GDLS was awarded a $358 million contract for 150 M1A1 SA Abrams tanks while the upgrade package of Taiwanese M60A3 TTS costs 3 million dollars each, far more expensive than 2.4 million M1A1 SA Abrams.)

Media

Skins

• Skins and camouflages for the M60A3 TTS (China) from live.warthunder.com.

Videos

The M60 family discusses the M60A3 TTS (China) at 5:05 - War Thunder Official Channel

See also

Links to the articles on the War Thunder Wiki that you think will be useful for the reader, for example:

• reference to the series of the vehicles;
• links to approximate analogues of other nations and research trees.

External links

Paste links to sources and external resources, such as:

• topic on the official game forum;
• other literature.

Chrysler Defense
MBTs
M48 Patton	M48A1
M60	M60 · M60A1 (AOS) · M60A2 · M60A1 RISE (P) · M60A3 TTS
M1	XM1 (Chrysler) · M1 Abrams
Export
M48	M48A2 C · M48A2 G A2 · ␗M48A1 · Magach 1 · Magach 2
M60	␗M60A3 TTS · M60A1 "D.C.Ariete" ·
Note	Chrysler Defense was purchased by General Dynamics Land Systems (GDLS) in 1982.

China medium tanks
ZTZ59	Type 59 · ZTZ59A · ZTZ59D1
ZTZ69	Type 69 · Type 69-IIa
ZTZ88/96	ZTZ88A · ZTZ88B
	ZTZ96 · ZTZ96A · ZTZ96A (P)
ZTZ99	ZTZ99-II · ZTZ99-III
ZTZ99A	ZTZ99A · WZ1001(E) LCT
Export series	MBT-2000 · VT4A1
ROC	CM11
Other	Т-34-85 Gai · Object 122MT "MC"
Bangladesh	T-69 II G
Japan	␗Chi-Ha · ␗Chi-Ha Kai
Pakistan	Al-Khalid-I
USA	␗M4A4 · ␗M4A4 (1st PTG) · ␗M4A1 (75) W · ␗M48A1 · ␗M60A3 TTS
USSR	␗T-34 (1943) · ␗Т-34-85 (S-53) · T-34-85 No.215 · Т-62 №545